National Briefing / New York

Terrorism case focuses on communications

An Afghan immigrant accused of plotting a terrorist attack in New York City contacted accomplices there while making a cross-country drive from Denver, raising concerns among investigators that he was sending instructions to purchase more bomb-making chemicals, officials familiar with the case said.

Terrorism investigators are trying to determine whether suspect Najibullah Zazi sent instructions to associates as he drove to New York last month, law enforcement officials told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Such instructions could explain a crucial missing piece of the case: why authorities found no explosives.

The officials did not describe the nature of the communication, but court documents indicate investigators have been examining Zazi's cellphone and e-mail traffic.

Zazi has denied being involved in a terrorist plot. He has pleaded not guilty to a charge of conspiring to detonate explosives in the United States.